Ever since the radio thread and I purchased one I have started radio scanning once again. Really fun and interesting.

Today I heard something really interesting. Only in Atlanta does the School bus dispatch have to remind the drivers not to wear their eclipse sun glasses while driving. I am not kidding. That is all.

Believe it.

In terms of your title.

Where do you start?

Before cell phones, we used to have company radios, had our own private FCC licensed channel, could receive FCC fines for things said over the channel, and had technicians who maintained the towers that covered a multi-state region. You could actually use a handset to dial a phone (literally the company radio network was used to dial somebody's phone), but only one person could talk at a time and EVERYBODY could hear it.

Some of my coworkers using the telephone calling feature to their wives resulted in comedy gold. Frequently it was the wife trying to talk at the same time and not saying "over" when finished speaking, and it was almost like listening to an Abbott and Costello bit. However, the real comedy occurred when they forgot that EVERYBODY could hear what they said.

I wrote all of that as background to the thing I can't believe I heard over company radio:
Coworker's wife: Hello?
Coworker: Hi Honey!
Coworker's wife: I'm horny, when are you getting home?
Coworker: I'm calling from the radio!!!!
Other coworkers / amateur comedians / amateur gigolos: {hilarity ensued ranging from laughter to offers of "pinch hitter" services to warnings of FCC fines}

This message has been edited. Last edited by: tatortodd,

"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college."

Look it up

Along similar lines, blocks of C-4 still have “Do Not Eat” printed on them.

It smells yummy!

I think unbelievable is a silly overused word, anything truly unbelievable we wouldn’t be able to even imagine.

Ignorant, stupid, unexpected, unnecessary. Sure.

But unbelievable? Not quite.

Silly rant, not meant to thread drift. Just is what it is. I can’t take credit for the thought, heard it first with Jocko Willink, and fairly certain I’ve heard it since then on the forum.

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:
Along similar lines, blocks of C-4 still have “Do Not Eat” printed on them.

And Claymore mines have "Front Toward Enemy" printed on them in large block capital letters. Back in the day, I wondered what had happened to make the manufacturer put that on the front of the mine.

Many years ago one of my soldiers asked me, "Abraham Lincoln was Jewish because he had a beard, right?"

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
I think unbelievable is a silly overused word, anything truly unbelievable we wouldn’t be able to even imagine.

Ignorant, stupid, unexpected, unnecessary. Sure.

But unbelievable? Not quite.

Silly rant, not meant to thread drift. Just is what it is. I can’t take credit for the thought, heard it first with Jocko Willink, and fairly certain I’ve heard it since then on the forum.

Welllllll I mean we can think of a shit ton of impossibilities (mental masturbation) that is unbelievable. Inconceivable, on the other hand, I agree with because if we can think it, it’s conceivable, but still possibly unbelievable… No?

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Many years ago one of my soldiers asked me, "Abraham Lincoln was Jewish because he had a beard, right?"

Correct. He was named Avram, but thought that perhaps he might go further if he wasn't quite so Jewish.

quote:

Originally posted by SigSauerP226:
Inconceivable, on the other hand, I agree with because if we can think it, it’s conceivable, but still possibly unbelievable… No?

You're right. Lots of things can be imagined or said or suggested but not be believable. If something is inconceivable however, it cannot be imagined or conceived of. THAT word is often misused/overused.

quote:

Originally posted by SigSauerP226:

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
I think unbelievable is a silly overused word, anything truly unbelievable we wouldn’t be able to even imagine.

Ignorant, stupid, unexpected, unnecessary. Sure.

But unbelievable? Not quite.

Silly rant, not meant to thread drift. Just is what it is. I can’t take credit for the thought, heard it first with Jocko Willink, and fairly certain I’ve heard it since then on the forum.

Welllllll I mean we can think of a shit ton of impossibilities (mental masturbation) that is unbelievable. Inconceivable, on the other hand, I agree with because if we can think it, it’s conceivable, but still possibly unbelievable… No?

Perhaps, I just think its a bit oxymoronic.

We may not THINK it'll happen, shouldn't happen, couldn't happen, but if we can think it. One day we can't "unbelievable" it.

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
I think unbelievable is a silly overused word, anything truly unbelievable we wouldn’t be able to even imagine.

A fair bit of modern English runs to the overstated end of things. I've been thinking about this lately, and I've been guilty of it as well, but it's gotten to the point where many words are losing meaning. "Unbelievable" is one, but think of the way people have thrown around "epic," and "awesome" in recent years. Anymore, I prefer understating things. It seems to have almost more impact that way.

quote:

Originally posted by JackBlundell:

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:
Along similar lines, blocks of C-4 still have “Do Not Eat” printed on them.

And Claymore mines have "Front Toward Enemy" printed on them in large block capital letters. Back in the day, I wondered what had happened to make the manufacturer put that on the front of the mine.

This one makes a BIT more sense. Some people pick one up and think it's supposed to focus the blast toward the enemy, so they plant it with the concave side out.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
Many years ago one of my soldiers asked me, "Abraham Lincoln was Jewish because he had a beard, right?"

About as Jewish as Whoopie Goldberg .

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:

quote:

Originally posted by JackBlundell:

quote:

Originally posted by flesheatingvirus:
Along similar lines, blocks of C-4 still have “Do Not Eat” printed on them.

And Claymore mines have "Front Toward Enemy" printed on them in large block capital letters. Back in the day, I wondered what had happened to make the manufacturer put that on the front of the mine.

This one makes a BIT more sense. Some people pick one up and think it's supposed to focus the blast toward the enemy, so they plant it with the concave side out.

"Oh fuck! Guess we should print a warning on them or sumtin'"

quote:

Originally posted by selogic:

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:

Many years ago one of my soldiers asked me, "Abraham Lincoln was Jewish because he had a beard, right?"

About as Jewish as Whoopie Goldberg .

Whoopi has a beard? I did not know that.

quote:

Originally posted by P220 Smudge:

quote:

Originally posted by OttoSig:
I think unbelievable is a silly overused word, anything truly unbelievable we wouldn’t be able to even imagine.

A fair bit of modern English runs to the overstated end of things. I've been thinking about this lately, and I've been guilty of it as well, but it's gotten to the point where many words are losing meaning. "Unbelievable" is one, but think of the way people have thrown around "epic," and "awesome" in recent years. Anymore, I prefer understating things. It seems to have almost more impact that way.

Historic is another one, three time a week a historic event has happened.